


Back to the Beginning

by Atanih88



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: Dubious Consent, M/M, Minor Angst, Violence, bottom!Sanzo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-09
Updated: 2011-10-09
Packaged: 2017-10-24 11:02:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/262746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Atanih88/pseuds/Atanih88
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What do you find at the end of their journey to the west? Nothing but another pain in the ass.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Back to the Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Written as a gift for sekaiseifuku in yuletide_smut 2010!

They hadn't expected the journey to begin all over again.

The war was over. Gyaomaoh was defeated.

Humans and youkai remained at each other's throat despite the end of the calamity. The prejudice had been too deeply rooted even before those assholes had started messing about with science and youkai powers.

Goku disappeared.

Life went on.

In the end it was all pretty fucking anti-climatic.

~

Maybe that's why it was never really over and they found themselves standing at the bottom of a mountain that they could barely see for all the mist that covered it in milky white.

Sanzo stood with Gojyo and Hakkai on his other side. Hakuryuu rested along the top of Hakkai's shoulders, watching the youkai standing in front of them with tiny eyes.

The youkai looked to be about Sanzo's height, robes dusting the ground in a mellow yellow, white blond hair falling to the floor and spilling all over the rocks he looked so comfortable resting on. Sanzo could see a monkey like tail curling and uncurling in the air as the youkai tipped down the round spectacles, lowered his book and peered at them. His eyes were glossed black, no hint of whites.

They were fixed on Sanzo.

The youkai snapped the book closed and swung bare feet to the lower rocks, not even flinching at the jagged edges digging into his soles.

Sanzo rubbed his thumb over the length of his gun, the metal warm and smooth to the touch, a reassuring weight against his thigh. But all the youkai did was stand and give a slight bow.

"It has taken you some time to get here. I was expecting you much sooner."

~

Sanzo's hand was steady; the gun trained on the space between the golden eyes that were so much like Goku's. Except they were too shuttered to belong on Goku's face. And the last time they'd been anything else, Sanzo remembered the wrenching fingers that had come close to tearing his arm off.

War Prince Nataku, that was how he'd introduced himself the last time.

He stood quiet and unblinking despite having Sanzo's gun in his face. The rain continued to rush down in thick sheets, forcing Sanzo to blink to keep a clear view of the young man in front of him. They were both getting drenched, not that Sanzo gave a shit, he'd had worse happen. But those fancy robes were getting muddied and the kid didn't so much as spare them a glance.

The observation brought with it the image of the kid on his knees, blood spattered robe pooled around him as he shook Goku's shoulders and whispered through broken sobs for Goku to say his name.

Except Goku's eyes hadn't opened at all.

Sanzo's mouth firmed and his fingers tightened on the trigger.

The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and Sanzo's body practically snapped with tension as Nataku stepped forward. His hands stayed at his side and his eyes on Sanzo's face. He never once moved to brush away the pale hair plastering to his face as the rain continued to batter them both.

When he was within an arm's length from Sanzo, just a breath away from having the gun pressed flush against his forehead, he stopped.

Sanzo waited and tried to control the urge to just put a bullet in the kid's head. Goku would give him shit for it. And that thought, so pathetic, almost forced a bitter snort of laughter from his chest. But he couldn't laugh at that, not even if it was in self-mockery.

There was also the fact that the kid could snap him apart if Sanzo so much as twitched in his direction. He moved the same way Goku had too, except instead of the wildness of Goku's Saiten Taisei form, this one had complete control over the killing intent and he used it with calculation, as opposed to the cruel joy of a child breaking its toys.

When the kid didn't speak though, Sanzo gritted his teeth. "Well? You want something?"

Nataku blinked. He looked down at the ground where the mud had soaked the hem of his robes in sickly brown. As if he wasn't sure what he was doing there.

Sanzo narrowed his eyes. "Oi."

Nataku looked back up. "It's harder."

Maybe he should just shoot him anyway. "Yeah? Whatever it is, I don't give a fuck. Get the hell off my grounds."

Nataku shook his head gently, and looked around them before looking at Sanzo too, a little dip between his eyebrows. "It's harder to sense Goku's presence here."

Sanzo froze. His fingers clenched the gun, slippery and numbing from rain. "You little shit. Goku's dead." He could put a bullet right between his eyes then watch the almost black rivulets run down the perfect skin. Wasn't this all his fault to begin with?

But then Nataku shook his head again.

Sanzo heard the shouts of from behind him—Hakkai and Gojyo. But he heard nothing except the three words that left Nataku's mouth.

"No. He isn't."

~

It really shouldn't have taken Sanzo as long as it did. Because as he stood there staring at the youkai, he thought about how familiar the tart smell of citrus, so sharp in the air, was familiar. It reminded him of when Goku was little and he'd sat huddled in a corner, oranges piled on his lap which he'd taken from the temple's sacred tree.

Later memories of that scent were different.

He stared at the youkai, for a second just taking in the smell and remembering that Goku's lips had smelled just like that even though Goku had licked the juice off his lips.

Sanzo had still been able to taste it on them regardless.

~

"Hua Guo Shan," Nataku said.

And that's exactly where they went.

~

Sanzo didn't hear Goku's voice in his head this time. He hadn't realised how difficult it could be to find someone, when there was no voice. With no voice there was no sense of direction and with no sense of direction, there was no place.

And if there was no place, then maybe that was all there was to it.

There was no place because there was no Goku.

And as he'd said, life went on.

Even when it didn't.

~

"I think you should come with us Sanzo," Hakkai said, setting the tea on the table and a chair out for himself. Gojyo was sprawled in his to Hakkai's left and Sanzo was sitting at the window sill, cigarette between his fingers and the newspaper open and balanced on the leg he'd propped up.

He paused in his reading, looking out the window. The orange trees outside the temple were a mass of black branches, sharp and bony against the mellowed lilacs and reds of the sun sinking in the sky.

"Sanzo?" Hakkai prompted.

Sanzo let his gaze run along the line of trees one more time and then faced Hakkai. "What?" He wondered why it was that he still couldn't read his paper in peace.

At the table Gojyo snorted and reached for the tea Hakkai had poured him, long limbs still spread out as if he were trying to take up as much space as possible. He didn't look at Sanzo. "He's asking if you want to come with us, man."

Hakkai sat back and Hakuryuu settled, curling in on himself on the table, eyes closed as he got as close to the tea pot's warmth as possible. "As I was saying," he gave Sanzo a quick sharp smile, making it clear that being blanked out wasn't something he appreciated, "we understand your responsibilities as the Sanzo priest and we know that the people have been waiting a long time for you to settle. But, given the circumstances..." Hakkai tugged the tea pot away from Hakuryuu and poured himself a little. The scent of jasmine drifted over, soft and curling, blending in with the scent of green that slipped inside from the window.

Sanzo put the cigarette to his lips and shook the newspaper once against his leg and went back to reading. He wasn't really seeing the words though. Not when he knew where this conversation was going. "If you're going somewhere, then go." Sanzo pinched the stiff, dry paper harder between his fingers, nostrils flaring lightly as the smoke from the cigarette hovered around him.

The table jumped under the slam of Gojyo's palm. Sanzo slanted a look his way. It'd been a while since he'd threatened shooting Gojyo, mainly because Hakkai kept him out of his way. Except this time Hakkai was giving him the same look Gojyo was.

"Come on man, you gotta be shitting me here. Are you serious about this? Six months of nothing and you don't even want to _know_?" There was real anger on Gojyo's face but at the same time his eyes were wide with disbelief. The hand he'd left on the table curled into a fist, tightening with every second that Gojyo continued to glare at Sanzo. As if he was struggling to keep himself from going for Sanzo's face with it.

Sanzo just watched him, waiting until he could block him out and go back to peace and quiet.

"Gojyo." Hakkai's voice was quiet but there was a warning there too as he reached out and touched his hand to Gojyo's shoulder. And just like that Gojyo looked at the no-nonsense look on Hakkai's face, shoved his chair back and paced to the other side of the room, muttering under his breath. Then Hakkai turned back to Sanzo, hands folding over one another atop the table. "Sanzo, I'm not going to ignore the situation. We're just as aware that Goku is gone as you are, but we don't seem to think of it as a foregone conclusion that he is _dead_ as you seem to. You of all people should be—"

Sanzo stopped attempting to read and folded the newspaper up. Throwing it against the opposite side of the window seat, he finished his cigarette and stood as he crushed it in the small ash tray on the floor. "Do what you like." Hadn't he told them to go already? What were they still doing there?

At that, the tension that had been coating the surfaces of the room as a mere hum, spiked up. Gojyo spun back around from where he'd gone to hover by the door, a snarl curling his mouth as his boots thudded on the floor. Sanzo let the irritation and restlessness that barely left him now-a-days rise to the surface and welcomed the chance to get some hits in when the idiot grabbed him by the front of his robes by both fists, his eyes narrowed in anger.

"You make for a piss poor priest, you know that? You think those bald morons in there need you?" Gojyo said, voice a growl as he gave Sanzo a shake. "Acting all high and mighty all the fucking time, can't even admit you're fucking pissed off. If you're thinking that what they need is a coward and a liar to look up to, then you're even stupider than I thought!"

It was instinctive, tucking his gun right under Gojyo's chin and forcing his head back with a steady hand. "Yeah? Then why are you still here?"

At the table Hakkai finished his tea and poured himself another one. "Sanzo... despite the unfortunate phrasing," Hakkai said, giving Goyo a _look_ , "I agree that I don't think you staying here is productive." Hakkai leaned back in his chair and reached out a hand to pet over Hakuryuu's head. "You're ignoring the problems at hand and given the current blood wars going on between humans and youkai, you can't provide this temple with what it needs when you're so focused on your own problems."

Sanzo gritted his teeth and shoved Gojyo away. "I've done what I had to do, now I get to be left alone. That's all there is to it."

"So you're abandoning Goku," Hakkai said, voice calm as he sipped his tea.

~

The youkai set down his book and then his hands disappeared into his sleeves as he smiled at them.

"To enter Hua Guo Shan I'm afraid you'll have to all baggage at the door."

Gojyo was trying to make himself smaller just to keep his head from banging into the uneven ceiling of the cave. "Yeah? And what does that mean?"

The youkai walked to them, feet sure and careful on the ground with its pockets of crystalline water. His robes trailed after him until he stopped between Sanzo and Hakkai. He slipped his hands from inside his sleeves.

Sanzo kept his eyes on him as the youkai lifted a hand and thumbed the limiters on Hakkai's ears until Hakkai reached up and caught his hand in a gentle grip. His voice and expression were calm, except Hakkai's eyes were always warning enough.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't do that," Hakkai said, voice polite as ever.

The youkai smiled back. "Of course." He dropped his hand back to his side and took a step back, dropping his gaze to the gun in Sanzo's hand. "But you enter as yourselves, or not at all."

~

It had occurred to Sanzo after that brat had decided to drop in on them from Heaven, that maybe it wasn't that Goku hadn't been saying anything. It was just that this time he wasn't actually being _told_ anything.

Because there were the dreams, although Sanzo couldn't be blamed for missing those.

Sanzo didn't dream of Goku.

There were dreams of Goku-related things, but in those dreams, there was never Goku.

At least he hadn't thought so.

There had been the one with Goku's room that in reality hadn't been so far from his own. In those dreams the room was always empty. The windows would be opened outward and the breeze would come in to ripple over the bed spread. Despite the warmth of the room, its walls were always painted in sombre colours, as if permanently stuck in the few seconds before dawn hit. Cut into dark blues. When Sanzo approached, the bowl sitting in the middle of the bed in its bone white colour and gleaming as if polished, would stand out.

He'd peek in and see soft pink petals filling the bowl to the brim, undisturbed by the dryness of the room or the breeze.

Every time he attempted to take a handful, the petals would disintegrate in his grip.

He'd gotten pretty sick of that dream and grown annoyed at his dream self for every time he failed to turn back and walk out.

In the end he'd always stay there, watching the flecks of pink disappearing.

~

Then there were the bars and the endless eye watering blue of the sky. Those belonged to another Goku-related dream.

In this one Sanzo would feel the ache in his calves and upper thighs; the muscles taut and worn. The back of his neck would be hot and sore from the lack of protection from the sun. He would pause outside the familiar cave, the weight of the sutra on his shoulders a comfort.

There was always something wrong with the image, like something had been severed as Sanzo stared at the back of the cave where the shadows were deepest. He realised that he didn't know why he'd climbed so high for this, that there was nothing there for him to find.

Just a couple of chains and a handful of feathers.

They were gold, a deep gold that flared at the centre of the feather and tipped into dark brown at the edges.

And then he would remember.

They were the colour of the gaze that should have been staring up at him as a small hand reached for his offered one.

As it was, Sanzo stood alone at the top staring at his own hand hanging suspended through the bars, waiting for warm fingers to close around it.

It never happened.

~

Other times Sanzo didn't see anything. Not Goku's room, not the cave.

He would wake up on his side, the spot of bed behind him untouched. He'd wake to the feeling of a hot, firm body pressed to his back, curled around him, the lingering sensation of soft breath against the back of his ear and his ear would tingle because what he'd really woken up to was the sleepy mumble of 'Sanzo'.

Except everything faded in a matter of seconds.

He'd realise the space behind him was cold and untouched and that he was the only one in the room. Even the ghost of a voice would be too far fetched.

Those days Sanzo would go sit outside with a cigarette and a drink, staring up at the ridiculous brightness of the moon.

~

The youkai let them pass.

Sanzo's hand was clutched at his side and his teeth gritted in frustration and the need to plant his fist in the youkai's face. Not that Hakkai was looking any better as the three of them walked down the length of what was left of the cave. His eyes, now with an unnatural glow to them were firmly fixed in front of him, the nails of his hands long and sharp. The pattern of vines tracked over his face. There was no threat of him turning berserk now—but it would never be something Hakkai would willingly choose to put on display.

Gojyo was as comfortable as he had been when they had come in, except he was still cursing under his breath as the shortening height of the cave forced them to stoop. It got to the point where even Sanzo was swearing as he got to his hands and knees, eyes focused on the far end of the cave—a mere sliver of bright white. There was a roar of a sound, steady and constant filtering in through it, getting louder the closer they got.

They ended up having to crawl the last few feet, hands scraping over rough stone, knees skinning on abrupt rises of the ground. Sanzo thought about wrapping his hands around the youkai's neck and snapping it if one of his sutras tore.

But then that smell of citrus slipped in and he forgot about that. He dug his fingers harder into the ground and pushed himself forward, again and again, until he was slipping a leg over the edge, booted foot sinking into grass as he worked himself out of the cave. Gojyo was just a string of complaints behind him and Hakkai a quiet menacing presence.

When he was standing upright again, Sanzo turned.

The roaring sound was from the waterfall in front of him. It was on the far side of the lake filling half of the small space buried in the centre of the mountain.

He blinked at it, momentarily stunned by the sheer amount of greens from the trees and clear blue of water all around him.

It was a small oasis buried in the middle of a slow decay of humans and youkai. They'd seen so many little towns, once perfect and self reliant, now just debilitating buildings etched in dirt brown and caked blood. Broken doors and furniture littering the roads and people hiding behind their locks, their only havens the temples they were months away from.

And then in the middle of all of that, there was this.

Gojyo's whistle pretty much summed it up.

"Now all we need is a couple of babes and I'm good for skinny dipping."

Hakkai stopped beside, joining Sanzo in ignoring the idiot. "What now? This seems to be all there is." He tipped his head back and glanced up at the mountain walls surrounding them. "It will take us a while to search the entire mountain. But there's so much here I doubt provisions will be a problem."

Then Gojyo was shrugging and plopping down on the ground, hands already tugging his boots off. "Well while you two decide what to do I'm getting in that little slice of heaven, I swear I've got fucking things in my hair man—damn youkai could've warned us about the little crawl fest back there."

Sanzo cut a glare at him. "Yeah, fingers crossed you'll get a cramp and drown while we're too far away to hear."

Gojyo just bared his teeth at him and flipped him off before starting on his jeans

"Sanzo," Hakkai said, he was looking up again, a small frown on his face, "we're also going to be losing light soon. Perhaps we'd better to stay put for tonight and start the search tomorrow."

Sanzo didn't get to reply before Gojyo came at them.

When he broke the surface seconds later with Hakkai hacking his lungs out beside him, Sanzo decided to murder Gojyo instead of the youkai.

~

That night, it wasn't a dream.

Sanzo sat up. At some point the sound of the waterfall had become just a background sound and so it didn't bother him as he rubbed a hand over his eyes and glanced around.

In the night all the burst of greens had been toned down, deepened. The huge leaves of the trees gleamed under the pale light the moon offered and there were glimpses of fruit decorating the branches around them.

He braced his hands on his knees for a second, still giving his surroundings a sweeping look. He could hear Gojyo's snores and Hakuryuu's little purrs as he slept comfortably on top of Hakkai's stomach.

Something had woken him.

The moon was a pure circle of white in the black water and everything had an odd stillness to it. The heat was like a second skin as it clung to him, and for a second he thought that Gojyo's idea of jumping into the water hadn't been such a stupid one.

Giving the other two another quick look, he pushed up, swaying a little from under the sleep still dulling his senses before making his way to the water's edge.

The water was a chill spreading over his palms when he brought some up and splashed it on his face and any noise he made was drowned out by the noise of the waterfall.

When he looked back up, he found himself staring right at someone else. All the way across the lake and standing on a small cluster of rocks just shy of being under the heavy sheets of water, Sanzo thought he saw Nataku.

And then before he could decide whether he was seeing someone or not, Nataku turned and slipped beneath the water.

~

He was shivering as he braced a hand on a rock, the soft moss rubbing against his palm. He pushed himself up onto the small strip of dry ground just behind the fall of water. His arms felt worn and his legs were weighed down by wet denim from having swum his way across.

It was even darker in here than it had been outside and when Sanzo stood for the second, he wondered what he was doing there exactly. He wasn't surprised to see that Nataku wasn't there, all those assholes from Heaven liked their mystery act even when all it did was piss people off. But when he considered just going back, he the dream in which he was in the cave and there was nothing but a handful of feathers came to him and he found himself staying put.

And there was something there, just under his skin. It reminded him of the first time he'd heard a little brat's voice in his head. It was just as irritating now as it had been then.

And then he saw it. In the pitch black of the water he saw a glimpse of something gold and gleaming from the bottom.

He looked around him but there was still no sign of Nataku and beyond the deep pool of water in front of him, the cave didn't go any further.

His Smith and Wesson was sorely missed as he stood staring down at the damn water and wondering if he should go wake the other two to do this. He wondered why Nataku couldn't have just come out and said whatever it was that he wanted said this time, instead of trailing after them like a stalker.

"Sick of brats," he muttered. Then before he could second guess himself, he dove in.

The water closed over him in a warm sweep and Sanzo blinked his eyes for a second, getting used to it all over again even as he wanted to just sink deeper into the warmth around him. He had expected it to be as cold as the lake outside. He shook the feeling off though and kicked his feet, propelling himself deeper into the pool.

He held his breath, feeling it trap in his throat and mouth. His hands swept forward and sent him deeper. It took him a bit to reach the bottom but when he did, he stopped so suddenly, he almost lost the air he was holding in.

Goku's face was right there.

There was a moment of doubt where Sanzo thought he was seeing things except then he reached out a hand and the backs of his fingers glanced off of Goku's cheek. And he couldn't take his hand back after that.

Goku's eyes were closed and it looked like he was sleeping. There was a diadem on his head but it was different than the one he'd had before. This one looked crude, like the lines of the swirls where it met had been carved with a stone. Tendrils of his hair floated out, long and rippling in the water almost to the same rhythm as Sanzo's feet kicking at the water. But the rest of him was buried under a mass of petals; it was like they'd poured a ton of them on him, trying to drown him them. Not one part of his body visible other than his face.

The need to breathe though was building and Sanzo could feel the blood in his head, as though it were being pressed down and yet still trying to circulate at the same time.

The hand he'd left on Goku's cheek slid around to the back of his head, burying into the petals and lifting. The water made Goku weightless and all Sanzo had to do was tug and the petals slipped away, floating into the dark as Goku glided up as if following the touch of Sanzo's hand on the back of his neck.

Sanzo pulled him closer, arms locking around Goku and he couldn't help the brief moment where his body refused to move but just felt the familiar weight against him. Though since his lungs didn't feel like they'd last much longer he had no choice but to kick up hard, pushing them up and waiting for the water to break. The lack of light didn't help his sense of orientation beneath the water.

Then his hand was plunging into air and his face was being bathed in cool air. He opened his mouth and sucked in air, oxygen sinking into his throat and soothing it as he pulled in greedy gulps of it. All the while he didn't stop moving, back stroking through the water with Goku cradled to his chest until his hand was slapping down on dry ground.

Suddenly the little space was filled with the sound of Sanzo's breathing, hard and wheezing. He heaved and got Goku up there and followed, his eyes already wide open and taking in as much as they could of the body lying still, as if still asleep. Sanzo flopped down onto his back; shoulder pressed against Goku's bare one and just let himself breathe for a while.

"When are you going to stop giving me trouble?" he muttered to no one in particular given that the person he wanted to listen was still unmoving beside him.

After a few seconds he got himself up again. He glanced at the small pool. There were petals, the ones that been all over Goku, peppering the darkness of it. Had they had been all that was holding Goku over? His gaze lingered on them for a moment longer before he turned his attention to Goku.

Apart from being naked, everything was okay. All limbs intact, even his little scars, the same as the ones as he'd had before, were there.

Sanzo checked them over; hesitant to touch in a way he hadn't been in the water. It felt different now that they were outside and the reality of Goku was shoved in his face again. But he did touch. He ghosted his fingers over every single silvery scar he could find and felt something tighten in him, stretching a little bit tauter with every brush against the damp golden skin. It was the same skin stretched over hard muscle. His thumb traced the dip of Goku's navel and he paused only for a second before letting himself chase the faint line of hairs leading into the thicker patch lower down. He couldn't help his lingered attention on Goku's dick, lying limp against his thigh. His hair was trapped beneath him, a few strands clinging to his ribs and curving around his hips.

Pulling his hand away, Sanzo sat back again and frowned down at him.

Taking him out hadn't woken him up. Something else was keeping him in his sealed state but there hadn't been anything else down there other than the petals. Unless.

Sanzo frowned and then reached out and touched the diadem on Goku's head. He left his fingers there when he felt the coarseness of the metal, it was rough, rasping at the pads of his fingers as he traced the patterned front of it and there was a cool pulse hovering above the metal, chilling his fingers with it as if he'd dipped the tips of them into a bowl of ice.

"Hn." So that was it then.

He slipped his fingers under the weight of the metal band and nudged it. It came off, slipping down Goku's damp hair to hit the floor in a lazy roll, a ring of gold as it slipped into the water with a plop.

"Oi, Goku."

It happened fast.

Too fast.

He'd forgotten how things were—how fast the thing that shared space with Goku could be. He barely got a look at the glimmer of gold eyes before pain was blooming across his back, thick and fast, sending a shocks down his spine. That pain paled a little when his head knocked back against the wall of the cave too and the hand on his neck tightened to a point where his mouth was hanging open and getting ready to fight for air.

Sanzo gripped the slim wrist of the hand pinning him there and looked down.

The Saiten Taisei's eyes were narrowed on him, his mouth twisted in a snarl and his other hand clawed at his side, nails prominent and fingers cracking, getting ready to slice through something. There was nothing in the body in front of him that belonged to Goku just then.

His gun. He needed his fucking gun—there was no way he'd gotten through the damn war, stepped over god knows how many bodies of youkai and other crazy psycho's to be torn into pieces by this little punk when it was all over.

He wasn't going to let Goku get away with being a pain in the ass.

"What are you waiting for?" he asked, arching an eyebrow at him. "We've done this before and you didn't do shit either of those times." Except the last time he'd been on a happy killing spree in the desert, ready to tear them limb from limb and the time before that he'd been a cornered animal lashing out.

The thought splintered and he almost bit his tongue as those nails cut through him, ripping the skin of his chest and tearing their way down to his stomach. Sanzo jerked against the wall, unable to move back from the pain.

The hand on his neck tightened a bit more and the nails there broke the skin too, sinking deep as a nasty smile started spreading thin and white across the Saiten Taisei's face. It made the pointed ears ease back, twitching as if the malice was spreading all over his body.

The cuts were a sharp sting at first but were too deep to stay that way and Sanzo's stomach shuddered as the pain began to set in, streaking from stomach to chest as the blood started welling up from his wounds.

The Saiten Taisei just tilted his head to the side, his mouth still stretched in that grin as he watched the expression on Sanzo's face. He lifted the hand he'd slashed Sanzo with, red staining the tips of those sharp nails. He opened his mouth and traced the tip of one across his tongue, eyes becoming hooded as he left a trace of red down the middle. Sanzo saw his shoulders shudder as he finished licking each nail, lashes fluttering every few seconds as if he were licking some delicacy from his fingertips.

But then he became still. It reminded Sanzo of a small animal that was trying to suss out his surroundings. His fingers were still against his mouth, tongue still rubbing at his lips trying to get the last little bit taste there and then his eyes were on Sanzo again. This time they seemed focused, the anger still there but simmering rather than bursting out at him.

He stepped closer to Sanzo, his grip not easing and Sanzo could feel something wet sliding down his throat in a slow roll. He was still shorter than Sanzo, hadn't grown all that much in the time they'd been apart and Sanzo could just imagine the face Goku was going to make at that realisation. That promptly forgotten as the Saitei Taisei nudged close, nose pressing into the hollow of Sanzo's throat and breathing in Sanzo's skin. His body was warm; the beads of water that had clung to his skin from the pool rubbing off on Sanzo's chest and making little stings go off on the fresh cuts.

Then as if the burst of violence had never happened Sanzo felt the him pressing his cheek to Sanzo's shoulder, tongue licking along the skin there as he pressed himself tighter to Sanzo. His hand finally left Sanzo's throat and he slid his hands down to ease his hands down, fingers pressing firmly as they went to feel the bump of every rib until his hands settled on Sanzo's hips.

Sanzo didn't move as those hands slipped around, nails scraping at the denim, trying to tug it away from skin as the Saiten Taisei tried to wriggle fingers inside while and started lapping at the cuts he'd made only a few seconds earlier.

For a moment Sanzo wondered if this was another of his weird dreams because there was an erection poking his thigh and the Saiten Taisei had started rubbing himself against Sanzo like a cat, a big cat trying to rub its scent all over him while getting off on it at the same time.

"Hey, hey—" Sanzo ignored the alarm bells going off and reached for him, curling his hands around his shoulders, hands moulding to the warm skin. The Saiten Taisei stilled, going tense as if waiting for Sanzo to attempt to stop him or push him away. Where his mouth was pressed to Sanzo's skin, a low growl rumbled over his skin and Sanzo kept his movements slow and careful as he slid his hands up to _Goku's_ jaw, thumbs feeling for the sharp curve there and tipping his face up. For some reason the Saiten Taisei went along with it.

Besides, it wasn't like Goku would remember this once he got back so maybe he could take a little advantage of the situation. And Sanzo did. With the same care that he'd reached for him, Sanzo lowered his head pushing the long hair away from the Saiten Taisei's neck and pressing his face there, just breathing him in. And maybe it was just his imagination but there were traces of that citrusy smell on his skin.

Taking it as in invitation the Saiten Taisei began to graze his teeth over Sanzo's shoulder, mouthing over it as he went back to trying to tug off Sanzo's jeans. He kept at it until he had Sanzo pressed back against the wall and moved on to Sanzo's collarbone, nibbling on it and sucking on it, little frustrated animal noises made quieter when they were pressed Sanzo's skin instead.

Clearly the jeans were too much for him though because the Saiten Taisei gave up and the top button of Sanzo's jeans flew away and disappeared into the pool. Then those same teeth were tugging at Sanzo's bottom lip, too savage for him to enjoy any part of it. It was clear that he wasn't going anywhere when the creature surrounding him was in such an extreme state. It was like he was trying to get as much of Sanzo into him as he could. That touch of anger was still present when he turned his eyes on Sanzo and stared, the colour eerie in the middle of the curtained darkness of the cave.

Sanzo's jeans were tugged down and the Saiten Taisei's erection was rocking against Sanzo's naked hip now, hard and smearing the little bit of come tipping it over Sanzo's skin.

"Shit—" the hiss escaped Sanzo on an expelled breath as the Saiten Taisei forced Sanzo's head back and attacked his throat, biting hard at every inch of skin that he could get to. His hands grabbed at Sanzo's ass, dragging stinging red lines over the taut muscles there until those nails were tucking into the more sensitive skin between Sanzo's cheeks.

That was a bit too close to the potential of real damage for Sanzo's liking and Sanzo firmed his grip on him and tried to put a little distance.

Not his best idea.

The Saiten Taisei reared back, a snarl on its mouth and the faintest glow appeared, shimmering into sight for the briefest of seconds around him—a pale green. And then Sanzo's head was jerking round to watch as a rope of water shot towards them, whip like sharp and wrapping around Sanzo's throat before he could even react. It kept him pinned with unbelievable firmness for something made out of water.

This was new.

Just like that the snarl went back to a purr as the fingers returned to where they'd been, nails grazing the hidden skin between Sanzo's cheeks while the mounds of the Saiten Taisei's palms kneaded down on the muscles and rocked Sanzo into him.

He was going to kill the little shit, was what Sanzo thought as he gritted his teeth and hissed out another breath. His own erection pressed tight against the Saiten Taisei's taut stomach. _Goku's_ stomach, damn it.

"Fuck." Sanzo squeezed his eyes shut.

He lost the control that had helped him keep his hands off and before the Saiten Taisei could tighten that rope of water around his neck, Sanzo yanked the Saiten Taisei's head up and slammed their mouths together. It was painful but it was the equivalent of drugging the fucking thing.

The sharp snaps of the Saiten Taisei's hips that had been attempting to rub Sanzo's thigh raw slowed and became a smooth rolling motion. The fingers on his ass became less biting and instead when a thumb ghosted over his hole it was a gliding touch, stuttered only by the dryness of the skin there.

The Saiten Taisei opened his mouth and purred right into Sanzo's, letting him slide his tongue in. And even though it wasn't Goku yet— _yet_ , it was nearly. Because the taste—fuck it was the same, it was the same and Sanzo closed his eyes and rutted against him, swallowing an apprehensive groan when the thumb playing around on his ass pushed in too fast and without any help at all from something to smooth the way. Sanzo wasn't usually on this end but the Saiten Taisei was clearly going to do what it was going to do.

So Sanzo slipped a hand down, wrapped it around the heavy cock, stiff between Goku's thighs and noted the slight easing of the noose around his throat. He thumbed the slit and the Saiten Taisei practically meowed into his mouth. Maybe he could get away with doing this without rendering himself unable to walk for the next few days.

The finger in his ass stayed there though as the Saiten Taisei began thrusting into Sanzo's grip—as if it were mimicking what it was that he wanted to do. Sanzo winced, the finger inside him a little too careless when it was tipped with one of those razor sharp nails. The idea of what damage could be done was enough to keep the arousal from going to Sanzo's head and he reached down with his other hand, lightly touched Goku's and coaxed it away.

The Saiten Taisei slitted his eyes open again and watched him. The coil around his throat tightened just a little, enough to show Sanzo that if this weren't going in a direction that he liked then there would be trouble. But Sanzo continued pulling his hand away anyway. He pressed it flat to his buttocks though, let the sharp nails scrape over his flesh again and tightened his own hand on the erection he held, rubbing it up and down the length and squeezing until the tip was leaking right onto his fingers.

Except that wasn't enough because the Saiten Taisei was drawing back away from Sanzo's hand and urging Sanzo to turn around until it could flatten itself to Sanzo's back, the vine of water never quite easing off, not even as he started rutting against Sanzo, cock sliding along the dip between his ass cheeks. The movements were clumsy and the noise of frustration accompanied by a bite to the back of Sanzo's neck, made Sanzo realise that this really was going all the way. It didn't help that Sanzo's jeans were still caught over the lower half of his ass either.

Pressing his forehead to the wall, Sanzo gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. He shut out the sight of his own erection, straining a little too close to the ragged wall, knowing that that could turn painful if he wasn't careful.

Sanzo reached back with one hand and tugged his jeans a little lower. His lower belly was tightening with every second and he wanted to wrap a hand around himself and pull himself off to the smell and feel of Goku. He didn't give in to the temptation though and used the little amount of come on his fingers to reach back and rub on his hole instead. There was nothing else and he doubted they'd be stopping just so they could find something to use. The Saiten Taisei didn't even stop rocking against him as Sanzo did it. Sanzo could hear his breath, punched out and excited, hands never still on Sanzo. They were on his chest, brushing over the cuts there, back down to his thighs, drawing thin lines over his hips. Then he stopped moving, the constant motion of his hands and hips stuttering when the head of his cock bumped against the back of Sanzo's hand.

"Yeah—just calm the hell down—" Sanzo muttered under his breath, his own fingers fumbling as he tried to set his feet further apart and he closed his hand around the Saiten Taisei's cock once again. The jeans were hindering though and he shoved at them impatiently until the wet denim final gave and went down past his knees.

This gave the Saiten Taisei the idea that they weren't going to do this standing and he fell to his knees, dragging Sanzo with him and planting a hand on Sanzo's lower back to make him lean forward until his cheek was almost pressed to the wall. His jeans were caught awkwardly between his calves and the backs of his thighs. But the Saiten Taisei was already scooting forward, cock head bumping against the puckered hole exposed by Sanzo's splayed knees. Sanzo grunted as he was forced to twist his arm back anyway and still the awkward attempts to thrust inside, once again getting a firm grip on him and this time lining him up.

Sanzo's own breath was leaving him too fast, anticipation mingled with anxiety at this. If it had been _Goku_ then sure, he would've probably felt some nerves at this but this—this was the equivalent of exposing himself to a wild animal and letting him tear into him. And despite the moments of docile behaviour, Sanzo wasn't sure that that wasn't the way it was going to turn out.

The Saiten Taisei stilled behind him. And then Sanzo felt it.

The pressure had him burying his face in his arm. He ground his teeth hard and his eyes were screwed shut as his body gave under it, the dry push into his body leaving him feeling raw. The twitch of Sanzo's hips to pull off was instinctive, unappreciated too if the hands that locked around his arms were anything to go by. The Saiten Taisei sank in until his hips were pressing tight against Sanzo's ass.

Their panting filled the small space and at the first few thrusts into him felt like they were tearing at him from the inside. The constant stretched feeling was almost too much to take. The Saiten Taisei's face was pressed to his back, tongue sometimes tracing the line of Sanzo's spine. Sanzo had a brief moment to wonder, with his face screwed up in his concentration to relax his muscles, if this was how it had been for Goku the first time they'd gone at it. Except it hadn't been. He knew it hadn't been.

Then Saiten Taisei got a little too enthusiastic and shoved back in—and it made Sanzo jerk. His eyes opened as something was grazed over that made his half-hard cock pay attention again. After a few more haphazard thrusts, it was hit again and Sanzo was waiting for it this time. It mixed in with the roughness of everything and Sanzo groaned and pushed back on the next thrust so it would happen again.

It was a series of hits and misses, but Sanzo shoved his hand down, worked his hand on himself, with firm and almost painful strokes as his breathing spiralled out of control.

It still wasn't pain free but... it was good. And when he came it was hard enough that even though his eyes were open, he saw nothing in front of him—didn't even register the sharp slaps of the Saiten Taisei's hips against his ass or the sharp bite on the back of his shoulder. At least not until his sight realigned itself and he found himself staring down at his own come covered hand with a dead weight on his back. Both of them stayed where they were, unable to move for a while.

Then from somewhere Sanzo found the energy to shift forward, shutting his mouth on the noise that would have left him as the cock still inside him slipped free. It left him feeling sore, an uncomfortable throbbing there along with the sensation that something else was slipping out of him. The Saiten Taisei's face just stayed plastered to Sanzo's back, body limp even as Sanzo struggled to pull his jeans back up.

Sanzo didn't bother zipping up, just turned through all the wincing and cursing and caught the smaller body against his as it fell forward.

The eyes were closed, breathing evened out and quiet. Sanzo cursed again as he pushed to his feet and took him with him.

Goku's body was a warm limp weight in his arms, his body damp with sweat as he slumped in Sanzo's arms. The cold air seeped in through his open trousers, colder where come was still drying on his stomach. Sanzo wrapped his arms around Goku, trying to keep from getting is hands tangled in the long hair.

But before Sanzo could wonder what he was going to do next he turned at the unnatural splash that came from near the waterfall. He found Nataku standing there, eerie eyes locked on Sanzo before he slid it over to Goku. Did the kid have a voyeuristic kink?  
Sanzo's hands tightened on Goku, unaware of himself. He drew him tighter against him as he watched Nataku's eyes sweep down Goku's exposed skin. Something flared in them, so raw that for a moment Sanzo thought they were about to have a repeat of the showdown they'd had the first time they'd met.

But then Nataku was pulling something out and laying it down on the floor and retreating, disappearing into the rush of the waterfall.

Frowning Sanzo hoisted Goku over his shoulder with a grunt, ignoring all the aches and pains littering his body and followed the thin curve of dry ground to the thing that had been left on the ground.

He picked it up, pausing only for a second at the familiar weight of the diadem. Against him, the Saiten Taisei stirred and rubbed his face against Sanzo's shoulder.

And no fucking way was he getting done all over again. He wrapped his fingers firmly around the diadem and eased down onto the floor, wincing as he sat down and pulled him onto his lap. He found lazy eyes watching him curiously, too sated though to do anything more than lie there and watch Sanzo with a satisfied curl to his mouth. He didn't do anything as Sanzo slid it into place.

Those primal eyes widened for a second, mouth going slack. The gold deepened to brown, the pupils filling out until they lost their reptilian slit. Then they were blinking quickly, too unfocused on Sanzo's face to see it before they closed.

Sanzo sighed and with a few more winces scooted back until he was resting against the wall of the tiny cave, Goku still in his lap and his hair now just brushing the nape of his neck, no longer a clinging mass of dark brown. He shifted on Sanzo's lap, warm breath falling from his open mouth against one of the cuts there.

Sanzo turned, watching the water fall until the sound gained a rhythmic quality.

His arms tightened around Goku, one arm around Goku's waist and drawing him closer, with his other hand Sanzo cupped the back of Goku's head, fingers threading through his hair and nudged until Goku's slackened mouth was tucked against his neck.

He'd let the hugging go this one time. And in the morning he'd kick the little shit's ass.

Sanzo fell asleep that way.

~

The sound of the waterfall sounded louder than usual this time and Sanzo hurt all over. There were pins and needles on his thighs, as if he'd slept with something heavy there for the entire night. His eyes were still closed when he fixed a frown on his face.

Then there was a soft tickling sensation on his forehead, just a soft brush, moving his hair away from his face. Sanzo opened one eye to glare and felt as if something had been shoved down his throat to lodge there, tight and unmoveable when he saw Goku sitting at his side, a small smile on his face, his hand sliding to brush against the curve of Sanzo's ear. He was still completely naked and sat there cross legged, not a blush in sight as he watched him.

"Sanzo," he said.

And this time it wasn't a dream.


End file.
